Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $85.00.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Sempra from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Sempra in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price objective on Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Sempra from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sempra

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Sempra by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 27,123,899 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,026,969,000 after purchasing an additional 2,917,668 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in Sempra by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 13,452,912 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,023,228,000 after buying an additional 874,133 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd raised its holdings in Sempra by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 2,891,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $207,662,000 after acquiring an additional 133,119 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Sempra by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,629,015 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $196,466,000 after acquiring an additional 116,297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 2.1% during the second quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 2,404,573 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $182,158,000 after acquiring an additional 48,592 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of Sempra stock opened at $83.02 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.14. The stock has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a PE ratio of 18.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. Sempra has a 12 month low of $63.75 and a 12 month high of $84.38.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.03). Sempra had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 8.58%. The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.46 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 EPS. Sempra’s quarterly revenue was down 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.79 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 26th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.99%.

About Sempra

Sempra operates as an energy infrastructure company in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Sempra California, Sempra Texas Utilities, and Sempra Infrastructure. The Sempra California segment provides electric services; and natural gas services to San Diego County.